Chapter 63
Chapter 63
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Silver Dragon
Chapter: 63
Chapter Title: King's Intimidation
-----------------------------------------------------------------
King's Intimidation.
This ability, which instantly crumbled the opponent's mind,
was the most effective means of minimizing information leaks.
But at the same time, if people witnessed it,
it was also the method that left the greatest mysteries.
Incomprehensible phenomena bred fear, fear bred vigilance, and vigilance drew attention.
In the end, if I kept winning this way, I'd end up tagged as an "enigmatic monster ability user." That was nowhere near the image I wanted.
And to claim victory, I'd eventually have to reveal some of my power. It was inevitable.
'Should I start switching to a different approach from the very next round?'
Having solidified this thought by the end of round 6, I leaned against the arena wall and began revising my strategy for what lay ahead.
Reveal my abilities?
Then which ones first, and in what manner...
Around me, the crowd was still buzzing with commentary on the recently concluded round 6 matches and predictions for the next ones.
Using their chatter as background noise, I pieced together my own plan.
As time passed and the break was nearly over,
I resolved to test the core strategy that would carry me through the preliminaries before the main tournament—in the upcoming round 7.
A few seconds later, a system message appeared.
The 16-player battles were gone.
Probably because there weren't enough people left to even fill one?
I pondered it briefly and quickly realized the real reason.
'Round 10 is different from the other preliminaries. And there won't be a round 11, so it's vanished from the system.'
Participation selection began.
Naturally, I chose the 2-player battle.
Moments later, the results of the format selections were announced. Only 139 people would participate in round 7.
Now, only true rankers—or those on their level—remained.
In the subsequent draw for order, I was assigned to an early slot once again.
The fight would start soon.
'From this round on, I'll need to make some preparations, even if just a little.'
Until now, I'd thrown on whatever and ended matches in an instant, so there'd been no need to fuss over gear or armament.
But things were different now.
I checked my current attire and inventory equipment—something I'd never bothered with before.
I didn't draw the Guardian's Magic Sword. No need to advertise that I used a blade.
Of course, if I happened to face a top ranker—unlikely as it was—I'd pull it out and fight without hesitation.
After a final thorough inspection, I awaited the system's guidance.
Light enveloped my body, teleporting me to the arena.
The round 7 arena was a dense forest.
Towering trees packed tightly together, with thick layers of fallen leaves carpeting the ground.
I held back on using King's Intimidation for an instant kill this time.
For the first time, my opponent's form properly materialized dozens of meters away, across from me.
A man in ordinary shop gear, wielding a common iron sword.
He looked weak. Pathetically so.
But in this transcendent world, appearances meant nothing. He could easily be a ranker.
The moment he spotted me, he dropped into a wary stance.
The opponent eyed Oheon and thought,
'That guy's standing there without a single weapon. An extreme close-range type?'
But contrary to his assumption,
I merely toyed with the [Red Crystal Ring] on my finger.
The instant I channeled mana into the ring,
a sharp crystal shard formed on its surface and shot toward him almost simultaneously.
The small crystal fragment, condensed from mana, sliced through the forest.
Pak-pat-pat—!
Piercing surrounding trees, the shard reached him in a fraction of a second.
'What the hell is flying at—'
He sensed something incoming too late and tried to react, but it was already over.
The shard's speed far outpaced his response time.
With its target-tracking ability, it pierced him precisely. Detecting sufficient damage, the system declared defeat instantly.
Returned to the arena outskirts, I resumed my original spot.
By then,
the spectators who'd witnessed the fight were growing increasingly rowdy.
"What the hell was that just now? Something flashed, right?"
"It ended instantly? Wasn't his opponent too weak? This is round 7..."
"Probably climbed up through 16-player battles. Bad luck for that guy."
"No, even so, that attack speed was insane. Did anyone here get a good look?"
"Uh... ice, maybe?"
The crowd voiced doubts over the overwhelming victory but couldn't pinpoint its nature.
A few high-level observers already knew, though they had no reason to voice it.
I couldn't hear their reactions, but I judged the plan a success.
If King's Intimidation avoided witnesses altogether,
this time, ensuring they saw it clearly was the intended outcome.
The new approach was simple.
Mislead them about my abilities.
Since I could end any foe in one hit regardless, the key was to conceal my true powers and let them mistake them for something else.
Make them think I was a mage-class job or a ranged ability user.
Implanting that perception was the core of my future strategy.
But this plan wasn't flawless.
Like with King's Intimidation, instantly overpowering a strong foe could invite even greater suspicion.
'Fortunately, that last guy looked weak as hell at a glance.'
Now, should I pretend to be around their level from here on?
That way, I could mislead them about my power level too.
I considered it, then dismissed the thought.
Sloppy acting would only expose more information.
My true strength being revealed was just a matter of time. This strategy was meant to delay that.
And pretending when facing a powerhouse?
That clashed with the strategy's essence—utter nonsense.
The whole point was to avoid drawing vigilance from potential main-tournament rivals by hiding my abilities.
Yet facing those rivals and half-assing the fight with pretense?
Against unpredictable foes, such complacency was supreme arrogance.
Arrogance and overconfidence leading to downfall? Unthinkable for me.
For a fleeting moment, I wondered how others handled it.
'Do other rankers try to induce misconceptions or act like this too?'
No, impossible.
This strategy demanded absolute confidence and tangible overwhelming power.
If you even considered the slightest chance of defeat, you couldn't afford such leeway.
The certainty of winning without main skills was mine alone.
In fact, that guy I just casually offed might've been a ranker.
My sheer dominance probably ended it before his real skills could shine.
In the end, only at this level did you qualify to strategize in a tournament.
And those who picked this approach without being number one would eventually fall from their perch.
Even I resolved to give my all in every fight.
With my thoughts sorted,
I watched the ongoing matches while awaiting the next round.
By round 7, most fights were actually worth watching.
Fierce exchanges unfolded everywhere, showcasing unique abilities and skills.
While observing the other matches, a familiar figure caught my eye.
It was Siron.
He was near an arena, locked in a heated debate with others.
As I approached, he spotted me and hurried over.
"Oheon-nim."
He stood before me and bowed politely.
I didn't respond to his greeting.
Uncharacteristically, Siron let the silence stretch.
He seemed to be waiting for me to comment on his passing round 7.
But I said nothing about it.
Not about clearing round 7, nor his visible injuries.
For the first time,
confidence gleamed in his eyes at first, but it faded to his usual demeanor as we stood there.
Evidently accustomed to my attitude,
Siron continued.
"Oheon-nim. I have some intel I've gathered to report."
Siron began relaying information he'd collected while spectating other matches.
Rankers' combat styles, standout unique abilities, and his own analyses of job matchups.
The volume of data was surprisingly vast, including plenty of useful tidbits.
Mid-report, he paused to ask if I had something to say.
"Have you perhaps met other administrators or people from Dimension 64?"
"No."
In Siron's case,
he'd already encountered several from our dimension. He'd extracted info from them too, which explained the abundance.
Even in this vast tournament grounds, running into acquaintances raised encounter odds considerably.
Me? This was my first.
Probably because other administrators wanted no part of being remembered by me.
They feared me too much to even approach.
Not a bad thing. Nothing fostered obedience like fear.
Though fear strong enough to prevent reports—like with Siron—was a slight issue.
Once his report wrapped up,
I nodded in satisfaction.
Then brought up Siron himself.
"I saw your fight."
His eyes widened at my words, clearly caught off guard.
"You watched it?"
"Yes. Quite impressive."
I said it offhandedly, but a faint glow of emotion crossed Siron's face.
"Thank you."
Hearing his reply, I promptly turned to scan for ongoing arenas.
Siron fell silent, no further words, simply following quietly behind me.
It was our first time spectating together.
Of course, we'd part ways once the next round began.